


This Perfect Day

by funnygirlthatbelle13



Series: Helpless [7]
Category: Critical Role (Web Series)
Genre: F/M, Future talk, Pining, Presents, Shopping, widojest hiatus prompts
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-27
Updated: 2020-04-27
Packaged: 2021-03-01 18:08:18
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,097
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23881330
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/funnygirlthatbelle13/pseuds/funnygirlthatbelle13
Summary: For the Widojest Hiatus Prompt shopping: When Caleb invited Jester to run a few errands with him, neither one of them could have predicted what a wonderful day they’d have together... or how much gold they’d spend.
Relationships: Jester Lavorre/Caleb Widogast
Series: Helpless [7]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1636885
Comments: 42
Kudos: 183





	This Perfect Day

**Author's Note:**

> Hi, guys! So... it’s been a while, but I hope you’re still excited for this newest installment! It’s been kinda rough making progress, so I’d like to take a moment to thank littlekoalawings for always being there to help me talk through my ideas and help me come up with titles!

It was good to be back on dry land, Jester thought, as she got dressed for the morning. Not that Travelercon hadn’t been totally worth it, but she was happy to not have to worry about followers of Uk’otoa ruining everything.

Besides, Caleb had convinced everybody to stay in Nicodranas for a week before they even started planning what to do next. And Jester had been making the most of that week, spending as much time with her momma as her schedule would allow, and even hanging out with Bluud, which was something she hadn’t realized how much she was missing. 

But it had been three days now, and she was starting to get restless. She wasn’t used to being cooped up anymore and was eager to spend some time out in the city. 

“Hey-o!” Jester greeted, plopping down at the table where the rest of her friends were already eating breakfast, “What’s the plan for the day?” 

“Yeza, Luc, and I are going to check out a place,” Veth said, “We’ll see if we can’t get them to bring the price down.”

“Lighthouse,” Fjord said between chews, pointing back and forth between Caduceus and himself. 

“I heard about this halfling brewery that’s supposed to be super dope,” Beau said, “So I’m gonna take a tour, and then, I’m taking a class so I can brew my own shit!” 

“Nice! Tell me if it’s any good, okay?” Veth asked. 

“Sure thing. What about you, Jes, got any plans?”

“Nope!” she said cheerfully, “I definitely wanna go out today, though. I just don't have any ideas.”

“You could, uh, join me at the beach,” Yasha offered quietly, “I was thinking about finding a quiet spot and practicing my harp.” 

“Oh, that’s so sweet of you, Yasha! But I think I want to do a little more of an exploring type of thing, you know?”

Yasha nodded. 

“I was thinking about doing a bit of boring shopping,” Caleb said, finally speaking up, “But, um, we could do some exploring as well.”

Truth be told, Jester was surprised that Caleb was volunteering to go hang out with her. Not because things were still awkward between them; that had all been taken care of at sea. What was surprising was that he was finally leaving the Chateau; he’d spent the past three days in almost total isolation working on… something.

“Ja, totally, we can do some boring shopping and then some super fun shopping! We do need to get some diamonds, though.”

“Sounds like a plan,” Caleb said with a nod. 

They finished their breakfasts and collected gold for diamonds from the group (Veth had handed Caleb an extra large sum “just in case”) before heading out. Nicodranas was always beautiful, but today, it was even more lovely than usual. It was warm but not hot, the sun was shining, a light breeze occasionally drifted by, and it wasn’t humid like it sometimes got in the summer. She breathed in the sea scented air, catching whiffs of other interesting smells as well. It was good to be out and about in Nicodranas again.

“It’s a beautiful day,” Caleb commented. 

Jester looked up at him, grinning. He had a small smile on his face and the twinkle in his eyes that told her it was real. Her stomach did an unhelpful loop-de-loop at the sight. 

“Ja,” she said, “Reminds me of the outings I used to go on with Bluud sometimes.”

And she told him all about the outings the minotaur had taken her on as a child. About going shopping for presents for her momma’s birthday and carefully examining different colors of paint to choose exactly which shade she wanted to add to her collection. She told him about trips to the beach where she’d learned how to swim and a little herbal shop they’d bought lavender lemonade at once that she hadn’t been able to find since. She talked about all the little moments that she hadn’t even realized she had missed until she had come back to the city, and all the while, Caleb listened intently. He was a very good audience; knowing exactly when to ask a question or laugh and knowing when it was best to remain quiet and let the story speak for itself. 

She was in the middle of animatedly explaining her first public graffiti experience when the bookstore they had been looking for came into view. 

“I’m going to, uh, disguise myself,” Caleb muttered. 

“Why?” she asked

“We’ve been here before.”

“Did we steal something?” she asked, genuinely not remembering. 

“Nein,” he muttered, “I, uh, did a bit of slam poetry.”

The memory forced itself to the front of her mind, and Jester couldn’t help but laugh. 

“I can just go in and get stuff for the both of us, Caleb,” she suggested, giggling. He sighed in relief. 

“Danke,” he mumbled, “I’ll, uh, inquire about where we can get some lavender lemonade.” 

She nodded and walked in, turning back long enough to see Caleb cross the street before a soft meow caught her attention. A cat was on top of one of the bookshelves, stretching lazily. 

“Hi, kitty,” she whispered before beginning to examine the shelves. Most of the books were pretty normal, and honestly, kind of boring, but she did find a story about a princess and a prisoner assigned to test her food for poison that seemed promising. 

“Can I help you?” a voice asked from behind, and she had to fight not to jump. Instead, she turned around with a smile on her face. 

“Hi,” she said calmly, “My friend’s birthday is coming up, and he’s a wizard. Do you have any good wizard paper? Or anything else that he might like?” 

“I have some paper and ink of that caliber, but it’s expensive,” he told her, “And as for books? I don’t have anything about magic-“

“What about historical fiction?” she interrupted. The shopkeeper stared at her with a confused expression for only a moment before he was professionally neutral once more. 

“I actually have a new one, very popular right now,” he said as he moved along the shelf, “It deals with the affairs of Tessandra Julous, both political and personal.” 

He handed her a dark green book with white ink along the spine, reading Dominion and Desire. Her face split into a grin.

“He’ll love it,” she said, “I’ll take this, this princess book, plus all that paper and ink you talked about.”

It took a bit of time and rearranging her haversack, but soon, Jester had stepped out into the sunshine. A content smile spread across her face. Not only had one of their errands been completed, but she was pretty sure she’d found a great surprise for Caleb. 

“Hello. Did you find anything interesting?” Caleb asked as he approached. 

“Ja!” she said cheerfully, “What about you, did you hear anything about that lemonade?” 

Caleb nodded. 

“About a block and a half from the jeweler we usually go to.” 

She nodded. Of course it was something so close. 

“Well, we had to go to the jeweler’s anyway,” she said, “Let’s go!”

****

Caleb watched Jester as they walked down the streets of Nicodranas, his mind barely having room for anything else. He had a bad habit of watching her, even when it was less than ideal. Never when she didn’t know he was there; he wasn’t a goddamn creep. But whenever they were around each other, his eyes couldn’t help but to be drawn to her like a moth to her flame. She was just so vibrant, so wonderful…

Of course, he wasn’t a fool. He was perfectly aware of the fact that Jester was a whole person, filled with her own complexities and sadness. But that didn’t make her shine less brightly in his eyes. If anything, it was the foil that made the diamond that was her joy, her kindness, shine even brighter. 

Jester stopped suddenly. He was about to ask what was wrong when he noticed that they were stopped outside a boutique. On the mannequin in the window was a flowy lilac dress that she was staring at.

“Do you want to go inside?” he asked. 

Jester’s head snapped around before drooping.

“Oh no, it’s okay,” she mumbled, “These places are always pretty expensive, and most of them don’t sell things in a lot of sizes, so it’d probably fit Beau, but not me.”

Caleb frowned. He was far from an expert in fashion, but that seemed like a bad marketing strategy even if it wasn’t making Jester sad. But it was, and that was unacceptable. 

“Why don’t we go in and check?” he asked, “If not this store, we can probably, well, we could probably get something very similar from another place.”

Jester nodded tightly, and Caleb could feel a lump forming in his throat. He wanted to kiss her, to tell her that she was beautiful no matter what some random shop owner believed, or at least to give her hand a reassuring squeeze.

Instead, he simply nodded back and opened the door for her.

It turned out that the shop was run by a friendly half-orc woman, her gnome wife, and her gnome brother-in-law, and the size range matched this. Before Caleb could even fully appreciate the joy and relief on Jester’s face, they were being whisked away into the dressing rooms. Jester kept popping out in colorful dresses, each more beautiful than the last. 

“Cay-leb!” she called, “What do you think of this one?” 

He stopped mid-buttoning of the ruffly shirt he was trying on and stepped out of the dressing room to see what Jester was wearing. It took his breath away. It was the lilac dress from the window, although now on her, he could appreciate the details of it. 

The lilac fabric itself was rather sheer, with a liner underneath, and had purple flowers masterfully embroidered in a swirling pattern that didn’t overwhelm the light, flowy fabric. The deep square neckline had small ruffles along it, echoing the larger ruffles of the short sleeves. A wide purple belt cinched in her waist, making the knee length skirt look even lighter and flouncier than it already was. Or maybe that was the nervous way Jester was swishing back and forth.

She’s waiting for you to say something, dummkopf, he thought.

“You look beautiful, blueberry,” he all but whispered. 

Jester gave him a small smile.

“You’ve said that about every dress I’ve tried, Caleb.”

He had. And he’d meant it every time. 

“Try these, to complete the look,” Denyss, the gnome man suggested, handing Jester a pair of purple gloves. She slipped them over her hands.

“What do you think?” she asked, making jazz hands as she did so.

“You look… like a princess.”

She grinned, and he couldn’t have stopped himself from matching it even if he’d wanted to. 

“What about you? Have you found anything you like?” she asked.

“It’s- I am not the most fashionable. I don’t know what I’m looking for.”

She giggled and moved to a rack, examining each of the shirts before selecting a fairly plain white shirt. 

“We’ll need to find some kind of accessory or something, but here. This seems more you.” 

“Wait! I think I have something!” Denyss cried, running to the front of the shop and back in about forty-seven seconds. “Here, try this!”

This turned out to be a colorful cravat, with each color flowing into the next. Deep purple bled into lilac, which slowly became sky blue. 

“Go try it on!” Denyss insisted. 

He did so, stepping out once the new shirt was on and the cravat was tied. Jester gasped.

“Caleb, you look so handsome!”

He could feel his cheeks growing warmer. 

“This feels like the one,” Aida, the half-orc woman commented. 

“What do you think?” Jester asked, “Do you feel handsome? Because you look very handsome.”

He suddenly became very aware that the lilac of the dress Jester was wearing matched her eyes almost perfectly, and this discovery seemed to steal his words away. He nodded meekly. 

“Great!” she said, “Let’s get this stuff, then.”

Five minutes later, they were back out on the streets of Nicodranas, carrying bags full of their new clothes. 

“Should we, um, go get some diamonds?” he suggested. 

“Sounds like a plan,” Jester said cheerily, and they began walking.

As they walked past, they noticed a flower stand.

“A flower for the lady?” the young man asked, “Buy some flowers for your girl?”

Scheiße, he was definitely blushing. 

“Oh-oh-oh… we’re not,” he stammered.

Barkers used this technique all the time, he reminded himself. It had nothing to do with them. They were just around. He was trying to make a sale, nothing more.

Luckily, the jeweler’s was only a couple of buildings away, and they quickly got swept up in buying diamonds. 

“Whoa, what’s that?” Jester asked, pointing into one of the cases.

The jeweler smiled smugly, pulling a glittering comb on a cushion from the case. 

“Yes, it’s lovely, isn’t it? There are only five in existence; the purple diamonds make it exceptionally rare.” 

Jester’s eyes were wide as she stared at the comb in all its glory.

Caleb smiled to himself.

“How much is it?” he asked the jeweler.

“Oh no, Caleb, it’s way too expensive, and I already spent so much gold at that last store.” 

The jeweler nodded, putting the comb back in the case. 

“So just the diamonds, then?” 

“Yes, please,” Jester murmured. 

They bought three large diamonds and four smaller ones.

“I need to check out some rubies for a spell,” he told her, “It… might take a while. Do you want to go get that lavender lemonade? I can meet you there.” 

“Okay! Do you want one?”

“Ja, please.”

And Jester left, the bell jingling as she walked out of the store. 

He turned back to the jeweler. 

“I’ll take the comb,” he said. 

An eyebrow was raised.

“Are you sure?”

Caleb took out a bag of platinum. 

“The comb, please.”

****

Jester sipped on her lavender lemonade with a satisfied sigh. It was the perfect blend of sweet and floral, just as she remembered it.

“Do you need a hand there, miss?” an older man asked her. Indeed, her hands were rather full, between the haversack, shield, new clothes, and two drinks. 

“No thanks,” she said brightly, “I’m okay. I’m just waiting for my friend.”

The man nodded and moved on, and Jester quickly busied herself with examining some bundles of cinnamon sticks. 

“Thinking about making bear claws?” 

She turned around to see Caleb standing behind her, a small almost smirk on his face. 

“Did you get the rubies?” she asked. She didn’t know any spells that used rubies, but maybe that was what Caleb had been working on the past few days. 

He shook his head. 

“Too small,” he explained, “But, uh, how are the drinks?”

“It’s so good, Caleb. Here,” she said, thrusting his drink into his hand, “Try some! I think you’ll really like it.”

Caleb took a small sip, smacking his lips together like she’d seen fancy people do with wine. 

“Very floral,” he commented, “Sehr gut, I like it.”

There was something about hearing Caleb speaking Zemnian that made her heart skip a beat. Sure, she was used to ja and nein, but longer phrases? It was strange, she mused, how a language she only knew two words in felt so much like home. 

As they headed out of the store, she glanced up at Caleb.

“Hey, Caleb, could you teach me Zemnian?” 

He blinked rapidly in a way that told her that she’d thrown him off his rhythm. 

“O-o-okay,” he mumbled, “D-do you want to do it now, or-“

“We can wait until later,” she rushed to assure him. Today was a perfect day; the last thing she wanted was to ruin it with her silly request. 

Much to her relief, he simply nodded and began following the traffic of the crowds until eventually, they came across a bakery. 

“Come on!” she cried, grabbing his hand and dragging him into the bakery, “This place is so good, Caleb, you won’t believe how yummy it is!”

As they entered the bakery, her heart skipped a beat, though Jester couldn’t tell if it was from the trays and trays of sweets, the familiar smell of butter, sugar, flour, and cinnamon, or the way Caleb was still holding her hand as the door shut behind them. She giggled, not entirely sure what caused it, and was elated when she heard a warm chuckle from beside her. 

“Hi there, how can I help you today?” the pretty half-elven girl behind the counter asked, leaning against the glass casually. 

“Well, I have been hearing about Nicodranian bear claws for months,” Caleb said, “So a few of those.”

“And definitely some macarons,” she added eagerly, staring at the brightly colored cookies. 

“What is a mill-a mill-“ Caleb began, trying to sound out one of the words on the menu.

“Oh, a mille feuille? Those are super yummy, Caleb,” she said, “You know, can we just, like, get one of everything? Just so we can get the full experience?” 

“Ja, for science,” he joked. 

The baker grinned as she began placing desserts into a bright pink box.

They exited the bakery a few minutes later ladened with boxes of goodies. 

“We should probably head back soon for dinner,” she said, glancing up at the sky. The sun would be setting in the next hour or so, and she really didn’t want to skip a meal.

“Ja,” Caleb said, nodding, “Or we could grab dinner somewhere? I-today has been… pretty good. It doesn’t have to end.”

Her heart began pounding as if he had cast haste on it. A good day! Those were rare in their line of work, let alone for Caleb. And for it to be a day that was just the two of them hanging out? Maybe, just maybe… no, she was being silly. She forced herself to keep her smiling at a normal level as she refocused.

“Do you know anywhere?” she asked, “Cuz, like, I actually haven’t been to any of the restaurants here in town.” 

“One,” he said, “I, uh, Caduceus, Fjord, and I went there while you and Veth and Beauregard got your tattoos. But they don’t have vinegar, so…” 

“I trust you, Caleb, if you think it’s good, I’ll try it.”

He stared at her in that sweet, strange, Caleb-y way that simply hit differently, and she grinned as they made their way to dinner.

****

Caleb had no idea when or how he had lost control of the day. 

That was a lie. He’d lost it at 8:32 that morning. He had been planning to go out for paper, ink, and diamonds for the group, maybe taking a walk along the shore, and maybe just maybe, grabbing some fish and chips for lunch. But then at 8:32, Jester had mentioned that she wanted to head out for the day, and at 8:33, he had realized that his company might be appreciated. 

And now it was 6:47, and the two of them were sitting up on one of the dunes, using their coats as picnic blankets of sorts. A huge spread of pastries, desserts, lavender lemonade, and fish and chips was spread out in front of them as they ate, occasionally glancing at each other’s reaction to a new food, but mostly staring out at the horizon as it transformed from a sea of blues like Beauregard’s Cobalt Soul attire to a symphony of pink, purple, blue, yellow, red, and orange that reminded him of Mollymauk’s coat than anything else. 

Not that he was upset that his day had not gone according to plan. Any opportunity to be with Jester was worthwhile. Besides, he had grown accustomed to her disrupting his plans by now. He would be disappointed if his studying and moping weren’t interrupted by dick doodles, prank ideas, and checking in on him after a rough day. 

Still, just because he had grown accustomed to her didn’t mean that he couldn’t marvel at the strangeness of it all. He had been left to rot in Vergessen, after all. No one, least of all him, could have imagined sitting by the Lucidian Ocean eating pastries with the daughter of the Menagerie Coast’s most beloved entertainer who, for some reason, enjoyed his company, as something in his future. 

“Caleb?” Jester asked, pulling him out of his own head. He watched as she nibbled on a chip, an anxiety surrounding her that, while not new, was rare to see so clearly.

“Jester,” he responded, her name coming out in that soft way that only her name did.

She bowed her head, twisting one of her rings around and around.

“Do you ever, like, do you think about the future?” she asked.

Huh. He hadn’t been sure what to expect, but this seemed random even for Jester. 

“I mean, ja, I try to think everything through before I do something, but-“

“Cay-leb!” she cried, drawing his name out for all it was worth and then some, “I meant, like, you know, assuming we don’t die and all; we can’t keep adventuring forever. I mean, I guess we could all be like Shäkaste, but-“

Oh, gods. She was planning on leaving them, wasn’t she? She was going to stay in Nicodranas, and this was goodbye. He forced himself to stay calm. He couldn’t assume her intentions; he had clearly proven that he was terrible at that. So instead, he smiled.

“Planning out your retirement already?” he joked, hoping that she couldn’t see the panic that lay underneath the facade.

“No, no, it’s not like that,” she mumbled, still twisting the ring, “I just- you know, the storybooks never tell you what happens after happily ever after, you know? And I just… nevermind. It was a stupid question.”

“Jester,” he said with a frown, “You- it’s not- I mean, I have never really thought about it, but it-it’s not a bad thing to think about.”

He stared out at the ocean, watching as the waves crashed into the shore.

“I have not had dreams of my future in a long time,” he mumbled, itching at his arm.

A cool hand rested on top of his own. He turned to her, blue eyes meeting purple, and he wondered not for the first time if his parents would be proud of the man he was today if they could see him now. 

He hoped they wouldn’t be too disappointed.

“Danke,” he mumbled. 

Her hand rescinded, and he instantly missed the feeling of her touch. Instinctively, he reached out and grabbed a macaron. 

“I-I did have a dream once, though, I-I don’t think it could happen now, but… I had one,” he stammered out.

Jester, who was munching on a piece of fish, raised one eyebrow at him. He smiled softly at her. How could he not?

“I wanted to be a teacher,” he explained, “At the academy. “

“Aw, Caleb, that’s very sweet,” Jester said with a smile, “I think you’d be a really great teacher.”

He stared at her, watching as the sunset gave her skin a magical glow and her eyes an extra sparkle. And, for a moment, his mind was completely blank except for the thought that he never, ever wanted her out of his sight. 

Caleb coughed, looking away as he took a bite of the tart lemon macaron in his hand, giving him a moment to compose himself before staring out at the ocean once more. 

“And what about you?” he asked finally, hoping that his voice sounded appropriately casual, “What did you want to be when you grew up?”

“Oh, um, well, you know,” Jester stammered, “I never really had a plan. The goal was always just to explore outside of the Chateau, you know? And that’s what we’ve been doing, and it’s been great! But… I mean, Veth has broken her curse-“

“You broke her curse,” he said instinctively.

Scheiße. He turned to see if Jester was upset, but she was simply blushing a little.

“You figured out the spell. Anyway, Veth has her family and her body back. Caduceus saved his family and his home. Beau is doing super well at the Cobalt Soul; they totally love her. We stopped the people who were hurting Yasha. You and Fjord have goals for what you want to do next, even if it’ll be super hard to actually do them. And I just… I don’t have a plan, and I feel like I should, you know?”

He nodded, a lump in his throat making it impossible to speak. He swallowed, forcing it down.

“You are young. There’s time.”

Jester nodded, and Caleb felt the familiar punch in the gut feeling of her melancholy that made him wish for nothing more than the ability to magically make her happy. 

Instead, he took another bite of his lemon macaron.

“You could be a pastry critic,” he suggested jokingly, “Travel the world to find the best cupcake there is.” 

His little joke had the intended effect, and Jester giggled into a miniature fruit tart. 

“That would be pretty cool, wouldn’t it?” she said, grinning.

“Ja,” he agreed, grinning back, “You could write a book: The Marvelous Munchings of Miss Jester Lavorre, or… something.”

They stared at each other for a brief moment before bursting into laughter. As his chest rumbled with mirth, he could think of very little besides how wonderful it felt to be in this moment, fully present, fully joyous. 

This must be why she had named herself Jester. 

Eventually, they sobered up, Jester wiping at her eyes with her sleeve before taking a deep breath.

“But seriously, Caleb, I don’t think I want to travel forever, even though that pastry book idea sounds pretty cool. Traveling is really fun- I mean, I worship the Traveler; I have to like it- but that doesn’t mean I don’t want a home.”

That simple, four letter word hit him with all the force of one of Beauregard’s stunning strikes. Home. Zuhause. That thing he had not had in oh so long…

Though, he was hardly the only one.

“W-w-what does that look like, for you?” he managed to stammer out, rubbing the side of his nose as he sniffed forcefully. 

“Um, well, the Xhorhouse is pretty cool, but I don’t think I want to live in Rosohna all the time. Maybe- oh! Have you ever seen any of those cute little beach cottages outside of the city?” 

He had. The little white buildings with dark wooden stripes that made the whole house look like a giant window had always seemed charming to him. They were not as grand as homes in Rexxentrum or Zadash, but there was a certain quaint beauty about them that he appreciated. 

He nodded in confirmation. 

“So, like, I think something like that might be nice. And, you know, there’d be room so that all of ou-my friends could visit whenever they like. And there’d be a little garden where I could plant some nice flowers and make a little shrine to the Traveler. I don’t know, it just sounds nice. It’s probably pretty stupid, though.”

As she described the cottage, he could see it in his mind’s eye, which was making little additions here and there. A sourdough starter in the kitchen, a window bench looking out into the garden. A library that was covered in bookshelves from floor to ceiling…

“Nein,” he whispered, “It sounds wonderful.”

Jester smiled up at him, something small and not quite confident and far more real than he was used to seeing. 

“Ja?” she asked, her voice high and trembling. 

“Ja,” he mumbled, “You deserve to be happy, blueberry. Do not let anyone tell you differently.” 

Jester leaned into him, causing him to freeze for a moment before wrapping his arm around her. 

“Thank you, Caleb,” she whispered, “Today has been wonderful.”

“Bitte schön,” he whispered, holding her so close that he was practically talking into her hair. 

“Oh!” she gasped, “I almost forgot, I have a present for you!”

She began rummaging through her haversack until she pulled out a green book. He took it delicately, barely believing it as he examined the book.

“It’s another historical fiction book that’s supposed to be super good,” she explained, “It’s about some… Tessa Julius or something?”

Tessandra Julous. He vaguely remembered hearing the name in a history book, but the Empire did not have much information about the Julous Dominion readily available. 

“This is… Jester, you are brilliant,” he said, feeling his fingers itching to move. He let them tap against the hardcover rapidly, “There is so little information- but there wouldn’t be censorship here- you are incredible! I have something for you,” he rambled, the joy and excitement clouding his mind as he pulled out the small package wrapped in brown paper. 

“Careful,” he warned, “It's fragile.” 

Her small, delicate hands carefully unwrapped the package until Jester nearly dropped it as she gasped. 

It was the comb from the jeweler’s, sparkling in the almost night sky. It was shaped rather like a peacock feather, curving gently into an elegant shape. Purple and white diamonds made up the places where it branched out, and one large, teardrop shaped sapphire sat in the eye of the feather.

“Caleb, it’s beautiful, but I can’t- that book cost a few fold, but this…” she trailed off, staring at the remarkable piece of jewelry. 

“You deserve to be happy,” he said simply, “I know you are not always and I-I don’t expect you to be, that would be insane, but… I like to see you smile, really. Like now. And, as long as it’s okay with you, I would-I would like to try and make you smile like this more often.”

Jester nodded, carefully setting down the comb before launching herself into his arms. Caleb instinctively stiffened before relaxing into the embrace, focusing in on exactly how it felt to hold her. There was something that, no matter how much he hated to think it, felt right about all of this. Almost as if it were meant to be…

It wasn’t, of course, but he could lie to himself just a little bit, tell himself that it was because they were in love, that he deserved any of this. He closed his eyes, trying to forever preserve this moment, this perfect day.

**Author's Note:**

> So yeah, there it is! I hope you enjoyed! If you did, please let me know!


End file.
